042 Idol Chapter 18: Battle Commences
I got distracted staring at the GGO and fell behind. Sorry.
In a match where equipment is on the line, the winner receives a list of the loser’s gear.
If the G-Bullet appears on that list, it’ll definitely be taken.
That sense of impending doom forced me to jump headfirst into the devious trap of baseball fist rules.
But there’s a line we, as an idol group, must not cross.
So we decided to aim for a decisive victory by destroying the enemy flagship early.
The only saving grace in a bet match—unlike regular baseball fist rules—is that surrender is allowed.
First objective: prevent the equipment list from being handed over and keep the G-Bullet’s existence a secret. No one gets stripped.
Second objective: win even if the G-Bullet is exposed, and stop it from being stolen. No one gets stripped.
Third objective: above all, no one gets stripped!
"Boss! This whole thing's definitely the office's fault, right?"
"Yeah... utterly embarrassing."
"Then I'll get the ship's overhaul budget approved as a necessary expense?"
"Please don't be too harsh on me."
"Beam cannon and... repair costs... is that about it?"
"Hmm... well, I guess that's all we can do."
"Hehehe. Now we’ve got insurance. We won’t need to use the G-Bullet after all. Oh, though—better make sure we’ve confirmed that one thing..."
Before the individual duels, a certain verification was conducted with the government.
A query regarding the number of ships in the individual duels.
Details omitted, but the result was satisfactory.
＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊
The day of the final showdown arrived. Good thing all the preparations are complete.
Step into the Personal Ship’s CIC and take a seat in the cockpit. Data link.
Heading toward the simulated dueling arena in the virtual space.
The backstage area housed six ships—avatars—gathered together: 'KIRARA (KIRARA) (AKIRA)', 'RIO', 'NAHO (NAHO) (TANPOPO)', 'SAYA', 'MIYU', and 'KAMI'.
'KAMI' was President Kamizawa, participating as an observer. Not a deity of white rooms.
The other five ships were combatants. The president couldn’t fight—but could signal surrender.
'KIRARA' and 'NAHO' were participating under officially approved stage names.
Ship specifications as follows. ('KAMI'—unknown)
'KIRARA (KIRARA)'
Ship Class Fleet Command Ship (Flagship)
Hull Length: 212m High-Speed Cruiser Type 2 Arms Extended Hangar (???)
Main Engine Anti-Destruction Reactor G-Type High-Speed Propulsion Unit D-Type
Armament Main Gun Long Barrel 5cm Railgun Single Mount 1 Unit 1 Barrel Standard Ammo 50 (Ammo Remaining) / 50 (Max) Special Ammo (G-Bullet) 20 (Ammo Remaining) / 20 (Max) Special Ammo (Erosion Bullet) 20 (Ammo Remaining) / 20 (Max)
Secondary Gun None
Anti-Space Cannon 10cm Laser Single Mount 4 Units 4 Barrels
Missile Launcher Pod D-Type Standard 2 Units 2 Barrels Max Ammo 4×2 Missile Remaining 8
Defense Beam-Resistant Coating Special Steel Armor Plate
Anti-Physical Projectile Beam Shield E-Type 1
Stasis Field (Barrier) D-Type
Electronic Equipment Anti-Ship Radar S-Type Wide-Area Communication Device S-Type Tactical Weapon Integration Control System S-Type Sub-Computer D-Type
Empty Energy Slot 5
Status Good
‘RIO (Rio)’
Class Assault Ship
Hull Length 230m Cruiser-Type 2 Arms
Main Engine Thermonuclear Reactor D-Type High-Speed Propulsion Unit F-Type
Armament Main Gun Long Barrel 20cm Railgun Single Mount 1 Unit 1 Barrel Standard Ammo 80 (Ammo Remaining) / 80 (Max)
Secondary Gun 15cm Particle Beam Cannon Twin Mount 2 Units 4 Barrels
Anti-Space Cannon 10cm Laser Single Mount 6 Units 6 Barrels
Missile Launcher Pod E-Type Standard 4 Units 4 Barrels Max Ammo 2×4 Missile Remaining 8
Defense Beam-Resistant Coating Special Steel Armor Plate
Beam-Resistant Shield D-Type 1
Stasis Field (Barrier) E-Type
Electronic Equipment Anti-Ship Radar E-Type Communications Unit E-Type
Empty Energy Slot 0
Status Good
‘NAHO (naho)’
Ship Class Sniper Vessel
Hull Length 200m Cruiser Type Two Arms
Main Engine Fusion Reactor C-Type High-Speed Propulsion F-Type
Armament Main Gun 30cm Long Barrel Railgun Single Mount 1 Unit 1 Barrel Standard Ammo 80 (Ammo Remaining) / 80 (Maximum)
Secondary Gun 15cm Particle Beam Cannon Single Mount 2 Units 2 Barrels
Anti-Space Cannon 10cm Laser Single Mount 4 Units 4 Barrels
Missile Launcher Pod None
Defense Beam-Resistant Coating Special Steel Armor Plate
Beam-Resistant Shield E-Type 1
Stasis Field (Barrier) E-Type
Electronic Equipment Anti-Ship Radar B-Type (With Fire Control Device) Communications Unit E-Type
Empty Energy Slot 0
Status Good
『SAYA』
Class: Anti-Space Warship
Hull: 200m long, Cruiser-type, 4 arms (basic model)
Main Engine: Type E Thermonuclear Reactor, Type F High-Speed Propulsion
Armament: Main Gun: 15cm Particle Beam Cannon Twin Mount x2, 4 barrels
Secondary Gun: None
Anti-Space Cannon: 10cm Laser Twin Mount x4, 8 barrels
Missile Launcher Pod: Type F Anti-Space x4, 4 pods, Max Ammo: 20×4, Remaining Missiles: 80
Defense: Beam-Resistant Coating, Special Steel Armor Plating
Anti-Projectile & Beam Shield, Type D x4
Stasis Field (Barrier) Type D
Electronic Equipment: Anti-Ship Radar Type E, Communications Unit Type E
Empty Energy Slot: 0
Status: Good
『MIYU』
Class: Anti-Space Transport Ship
Hull: 250m long, Transport-type, 2 arms, Expanded Storage Bay (Empty)
Main Reactor: Thermonuclear Reactor Type E, High-Speed Propulsion Unit Type F
Armament: Main Gun: None
Secondary Gun: None
Anti-Space Cannon: 10cm Laser Single Mount x12, 12 barrels
Missile Launcher Pod: Type F Anti-Space x4, 4 barrels, Max Ammo 20×4, Missiles Remaining: 80
Defense: Beam-Resistant Coating, Special Steel Armor Plating
Anti-Projectile, Beam-Resistant Shield Type E x2
Stasis Field (Barrier) Type D
Electronic Equipment: Anti-Ship Radar Type E, Communications Unit Type E
Empty Energy Slot: 2
Status: Good
『KIRARA』 is literally the flagship, holding the center line. Even if『KIRARA』were destroyed, we’d still lose—so it’s protected.
『RIO』 is a突击 vessel, assigned to the front line. To look like a standard NPC ship, its avatar isn’t idolized.
『NAHO』 is a sniper vessel, handling rear support. She’ll pick off enemy ships from behind.
『SAYA』 is an anti-spacecraft vessel, handling front line duty. Her strong Defense will protect the fleet.
『MIYU』 is an anti-spacecraft transport vessel, handling midline support. Since her armament is only defensive, she’ll shield the fleet from missiles.
With these five ships, we’ll defend ourselves and sink the enemy flagship.
Attack power is low, but Defense is high. If Nahoko-san takes out the enemy flagship, we’ll win!
I, the individual duel flagship specialist, grab all five ship icons and toss them into the fleet selection screen.
Combat zone is randomly determined. Gravitational anomaly zone.
Avatar mode locked. Baseball fist rules. High-stakes match.
Opponent: Five ships from the Balchar fleet.
Numbers flash before my eyes. The countdown begins.
3... 2... 1. The count hits zero. The entire field fills with the vastness of space.
Match start.
Radar full-scan alert. Activate Tactical Weapon Integration Control System. Establish data link with wingmen.
Form up fleet formation as planned. Face off against enemy fleet.
Enemy fleet acquired.
Something’s off. One enemy ship is out front—acting like a shield.
Engage targeting correction system. Measure gravitational anomaly zones.
Enemy fleet is surrounded by gravitational anomaly zones. Protected.
The only corridor? Blocked by their lead ship.
Can’t target the rear ships directly. Then—
"Engage! Eliminate the lead enemy ship, then shift fire to their flagship!"
Enlarge the lead enemy ship on the targeting correction display.
Female avatar. (Well, everyone's in shemale mode, so it's not like it's surprising.)
"Hmm? Feels like I've seen this before..."
Naho scrutinizes the lead enemy ship (avatar) through sniper mode zoom.
"Akira... no, Kirara-chan! That's Ayame!"
My rookie training teammate—Ayame—was shielding the enemy fleet with her body.
"Why's Ayame in a baseball fist rule-specialized fleet? Did she get tricked into this?"
I groaned again, head in hands.
"Looks like she's definitely been stripped down... for this kind of work."
We're gonna need insurance. Hangar open. Release.